Greenwich party leaders squabble over donation

Justin Pottle

Updated 10:35 pm, Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Republicans are lashing out at Democrats less than a week before Election Day over the use of funds solicited by former state House candidate Marc Abrams. But the minority party is telling its rivals to get their facts straight and that the attacks are a sign of a floundering party that no longer dominates Greenwich politics.

At issue is some $2,500 in donations contributed to the Democratic Town Committee earlier this year by supporters of Abrams. Abrams, who was running as a Democrat for the state's 149th House District, dropped out of the race amid legal troubles related to sexual harassment allegations on Oct. 11.

The Democratic Town Committee's Executive Committee then overwhelmingly voted to use the funds for candidate Jill Oberlander's race for state representative of the 150th District at their Oct. 22 meeting. Just three votes were cast against using the funds, and the dissent focused on the efficacy of the campaign mailers the money was planned to go toward.

"After failing to condemn Marc Abrams after revelations of alleged sexual harassment and vulgar and abusive emails in two lawsuits forced him to withdraw his candidacy for state representative, incredibly, Greenwich Democrat Jill Oberlander now wants the DTC to take instructions from Abrams, who is trying to direct funds into Oberlander's race," said Republican Town Committee Chair Jim Campbell in a statement.

But Campbell's Democratic rival says the claims are fictitious.

"(Campbell) has a candidate who is losing and he is going to be first party chair to have a Democrat in the state House in 100 years," said DTC Chairman Frank Farricker, who noted that neither Campbell nor Oberlander's rival, Michael Bocchino, had denounced Abrams. "And now he is struggling to find nonessential issues that don't matter to voters."

"I almost feel bad for Jim," he said.

In emails to the DTC obtained by Greenwich Time, Oberlander's campaign manager, Alexandra Bergstein, said Abrams had "authorized the DTC" to use the funds that "he" donated.

Farricker said Bergstein's email was a misstatement and Executive Committee emails described the statement as a "poor choice of words."

DTC financial filings submitted to the State Election Enforcement Commission back up Farricker: Abrams donated just $285 to the DTC this year and his wife, Lisa Abrams, donated an additional $150, for a total of $435.

However, Democratic sources said Abrams did have a hand in pulling in a $2,000 donation from Evan Azrilliant, a New York City attorney. And in Executive Committee emails leading up to its Oct. 22 vote, members suggest the money had initially been "designated" by the DTC to support the Abrams campaign, but that the designation had nothing to do with the funds' solicitor.

Azrilliant did not return a call requesting comment.

According to the Election Enforcement Commission, Abrams would have had no authority over the funds he helped solicit, nor would the donors.

"It always is and always will be town committee money," said Josh Foley, staff attorney for the SEEC, who declined to comment on the specifics of the case. "There's not some permanent association with the donor. It doesn't stick with the money."